Betim, Brazil, October 27, 2015 - Fulfilling their role of pool favourites, hosts Sada Cruzeiro from Brazil and Iran’s Paykan Tehran emerged as winners at FIVB Men’s Club World Championship Day 1, placing themselves closer to the semifinals scheduled for Friday. The local side blasted past Capitanes de Arecibo from Puerto Rico, preceded by Paykan’s victory over the Egyptian team of Ahly Sporting Club.
It was the duel between Asia and Africa the one that opened the way at Ginásio Divino Braga in Betim. Recovering from two slow starts, Paykan Tehran improved towards a 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-15) with Farhad Ghaemi as their main player. Iranian wing-spiker was leveled with Ahly’s Ahmed El Kotb with 14 points each, but only Ghaemi finished the game with a smile.
“I want to congratulate Ahly for the way they played”, stressed Paykan’s coach Peyman Akbari. “I think they had some previous information on our team and we didn’t know much about them. When we got the hang of them we could improve,” he added after the match.
Second Tuesday game was highlighted by a superb display of Sada Cruzeiro, looking forward to recover the world crown they held on 2013. The home team wiped off Capitanes de Arecibo 3-0 (25-13, 25-18, 25-20) and star-player Yoandy Leal from Cuba stole the show with 10 points, the same than teammates Isac Santos and Filipe Ferraz, as well as Puerto Rican Héctor Soto.
William Arjona, Sada Cruzeiro captain, praised the good service from his team: “We could control the situations developed during the match, forcing with our serve and never letting them play comfortably on reception. That was our plan. We failed a lot, but it was a risk we had to take. Every match won is a mission accomplished.”
On Wednesday, South American champions UPCN San Juan from Argentina are set to join the tournament for the third time in their history, against Ahly Sporting Club at 5:10 PM (local). Afterwards, a mouth-watering clash between Sada Cruzeiro and Russia’s Zenit Kazan will be the treat for the fans at 8:10 PM (local), as the European champions will play their first game after resting on Day 1.
Top Scorer by Day14 - Farhad Ghaemi of Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
Top Scoring Performances14 - Farhad Ghaemi of Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
14 - Ahmed El Kotb of Ahly Sporting Club v Paykan Tehran on October 27
12 - Amir Ghafour of Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
Top Serving Performances3 - Farhad Ghaemi of Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
3 - Isac Santos of Sada Cruzeiro v Capitanes de Arecibo on October 27
Top Team Serving Performances7 - Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
5 - Sada Cruzeiro v Capitanes de Arecibo on October 27
Top Blocking Performances3 - Nikolay Nikolov of Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
Top Team Blocking Performances7 - Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club on October 27
Highest Scoring Sets25-20 Paykan Tehran v Ahly Sporting Club (2nd Set) on October 27
25-20 Sada Cruzeiro v Capitanes de Arecibo (3rd set) on October 27
Highest Scoring Matches129 - Paykan Tehran d Ahly Sporting Club 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-15) on October 27